Plant Nurseries in and Around Chattanooga

Signal Mountain Nursery

Kim Bonastia, Owner

Signal Mountain Nursery began with an obsession for orchids and a land purchase on Signal Mountain in 1947. Originally called Parry Nursery, Kim Bonastia’s grandmother, Ben Addie Parry, fell in love with the horticultural life and founded the nursery with her husband, Scott Parry, where  her orchid specialty soon expanded to peonies and daylilies.

“She was a member of the Hemerocallis Society and produced many of her own daylily varieties,” third-generation nursery owner Kim Bonastia explains. “So, it only seems natural that my parents, Laurel and David Steele, developed a love for the same kind of business and eventually came back to Signal Mountain in 1977 to establish Signal Mountain Nursery.”

Remaining rooted in her family’s history, Bonastia earned a degree in horticulture and landscape design at the University of Tennessee and returned to help with the business. The nursery has since expanded to growing many types of shrubs and all of their annual and perennial plants on site. “We proudly grow 75% of everything we sell,” says Bonastia.

With nearly 80 years of expertise and a diverse plant portfolio, the nursery also offers landscaping services – everything from tailored designs to installation – and lawn maintenance, such as pruning and mulching. According to Bonastia, the team’s creativity is their trademark.

“Our clients say that we should charge admission to just walk around,” she laughs. “Our staff is by far the most creative and artistic team, and they come up with the most beautiful in-store displays and ideas that enable clients to personalize their own homes. They love getting to know our clients and listen to clients’ stories to help them be successful with all of their gardening endeavors.”

For Bonastia and her team, these seemingly small interactions are the heart of their mission, as they “hope not just to sell plants, but to also bring joy to the community.”

She finishes: “Over the years, we’ve seen how small, thoughtful choices turn into something much bigger. A first tree becomes a gathering place; a garden becomes a source of pride; a yard becomes part of a family’s story. That’s what we’ve been cultivating for generations – not just plants and landscapes, but a deeper appreciation for the beauty that surrounds us. Because when people truly connect with their outdoor spaces, they don’t just see plants differently – they see the world differently.”

The Barn Nursery

Cole Webster, Owner

Beginning as a roadside fruit stand in 1967, The Barn Nursery was known as The Barn until Cole Webster’s father, Jim Webster, took over the family business in 1980. As a college student, he introduced plants to the storefront and turned over a new leaf for the business, naming it The Barn Nursery.   

With roughly 50,000 square feet of retail and growing space – including the addition of The Pottery Barn – it is now considered one of the largest garden centers in the Southeast. Third-generation nursery owner Cole Webster says he is proud to continue his family’s legacy and reminds Chattanoogans: “It’s springtime! Now, go play in the yard.”

“Joining the nursery as a third-generation family member and now owner was always the path I wanted,” Webster says. “There are not many places where you can interact with so many people from the community and make people happy!”

Webster Family Photo by Casey Yoshida Photo & Design

And Webster isn’t the only one with this sentiment. He says the nursery’s eclectic team and their shared passion for gardening is what allows them to provide customers with quality plants, services, and advice.

“Our group is made up of people ranging from CPAs who chose to work in a more fun environment to people who have a background in government,” he explains. “Management is also made up of individuals of all different ages and backgrounds. Together, we run the company in a fun, respectful, and hardworking manner. We strive for excellence daily and learn from our mistakes!”

The Barn Nursery offers hundreds of varieties of quality annuals, perennials, shrubs, trees, and houseplants and is widely known for its ferns; “They’ve shaped us as a company and family – our Cocker Spaniel is even named Fern,” Webster laughs. As a rule of green thumb, the inventory team “leans heavily on previous experiences and constant feedback from growers/customers” – ultimately choosing plants that “people like and grow successfully in the area.”

Overall, Webster feels the nursery’s success is widely due to its dedication to the community, customers, staff, and vendor partners. As part of The Nature Conservancy in Tennessee and Crabtree Farms Board of Directors, Webster hopes to continue contributing to Chattanooga’s gardening culture by sharing knowledge, educating the community, offering organic inputs, and donating plants and funds to local community gardens. No matter where the future leads, Webster says, “We will always love working with the community and growing alongside Chattanooga.”

Reflection Riding Native Plant Nursery

Hannah Mclaren & Lauren Russek, Lead Naturalists in Native Plant Horticulture

Known as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit nature center, the Reflection Riding Arboretum and Nature Center (RRANC) is a 300-acre, public green space featuring beautiful hiking trails, an arboretum, and a wildlife sanctuary. But some might not be aware of the center’s native plant nursery – operating since the center opened in 1956.

“Reflection Riding has a rich history of native plant sales that goes back to our founding, evolving over time to meet the community’s needs,” explains Hannah McLaren, lead naturalist in native plant horticulture at RRANC. “We officially began our regular annual plant sales in the 1980s. The nursery later grew to a permanent sales floor that’s open throughout the spring and fall growing seasons as it exists today.”

Guided by what “best benefits Chattanooga’s ecosystem,” RRANC exclusively grows and sells trees, shrubs, and perennials that occur or grow naturally in the region, such as elderberry, purple coneflower, beautyberry, chokeberry, Cherokee sedge, paw paws, and more. Over time, these plants offer necessary habitat and food for native wildlife.

“We offer a diversity of native plants that are ethically sourced and can’t be found at all major nurseries,” says Lauren Russek, lead naturalist in native plant horticulture at RRANC. “We propagate much of our stock from wild collected seed from the property, avoiding hybrids and horticultural varieties that alter the flower of plants in a way that reduces a pollinator’s ability to collect nectar. By producing plants from seed instead of vegetative cloning, we are also continuing to increase the genetic diversity of our plant stock.”

Donations and volunteers play an important role in the nursery’s plant production. With hands-on volunteer programs and workshops, anyone can learn about the beauty of native plants. The RRANC also partners with local high schools, purchasing seedlings grown by students in agricultural science programs.

Overall, RRANC emphasizes education and community – encouraging a relationship between people and the green spaces surrounding them.    

“We are driven by a shared belief that healthy ecosystems start at the local level,” says Russek. “We view our nursery as a gateway where people can begin meaningful relationships with native plants and the landscapes they support. I’m grateful to be able to support the region’s biodiversity and help others connect more deeply with the landscape.”

“We hope visitors feel welcomed, inspired, and empowered,” concludes McLaren. “Whether they’re brand new to native plants or deeply experienced, we want them to leave feeling excited to participate in their local ecosystem.”

Ooltewah Nursery & Landscape Company

Wendell & Gina Whitener,
Founders

For nearly 40 years, Ooltewah Nursery & Landscape Company has invited the community to “Come grow with us!” With their catchy jingle, 11,000-square-foot retail showcase filled with thousands of plants, and a new, redesigned website, Wendell Whitener, Gina Whitener, and their son, Winston Whitener are continuously looking for new ways to serve their community.

The business’s roots stretch back to 1982, when founder Wendell Whitener was running the Wendell Whitener Landscaping Company and dreaming of opening a retail garden center – an idea that grew into the Ooltewah Nursery known today.

“We began Ooltewah Nursery to help Wendell in his landscaping business and to provide a place where Ooltewah residents could find plants and expert advice,” explains Ooltewah Nursery vice president, Gina Whitener. “We started with a five-acre lot and have expanded to 16 acres today.”

The Whiteners didn’t expect their vision to grow so quickly, soon offering large landscaping trees and the region’s largest selection of bulk materials (landscaping rock and mulch to soils and compost). By 1994, they had also become a state‑licensed landscape and irrigation contractor, opening the door to major commercial projects with McKee Foods, McCallie School, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, and others – loading the bases for their biggest project yet.

“In 2023, we were selected as the Commercial Landscape Contractor of the Year for the State of Tennessee by the Tennessee Nursery & Landscape Association,” says Whitener. “And our latest commercial job is the new Lookouts stadium, Erlanger Park, and the surrounding Riverwalk, which we have been thrilled to be a part of.”

As their commercial work continues to grow, their team remains committed to offering personalized support for retail customers and healthy backyard gardens. This commitment also inspired them to help gardeners thrive beyond the nursery by founding the Ooltewah Farmer’s Market.

“We saw a need in our local community for access to fresh, healthy, local food, and farmers in our area needed a platform to market the amazing produce they were growing,” says Angel Miller, Ooltewah Nursery marketing director, graphic designer, and farmers market director. “And we were uniquely positioned to meet those needs. It’s been an important way for us to give back to the people of our community while also supporting area farms and food artisans, who are small family businesses like us.”

For every customer entering the nursery, Whitener says the team hopes for one thing:

“We want our customers to naturally come to our nursery whenever they have a gardening need,” she finishes. “Our nursery is a sanctuary where customers can get lost in the beauty of nature, their landscape dreams can become a reality, and we help guide them to that reality.”